Moo Deng Plunges 22% in 24 Hours, but the Buzz Around the Internet Sensation Hints at a Strong Comeback

Moo Deng, a meme coin on the Solana blockchain inspired by a viral Thai pygmy hippo, has experienced a sharp decline, dropping 22% in the last 24 hours and nearly 45% over the past week—far from its previous record highs.

According to data from crypto.news, as of Oct. 16, Moo Deng plunged by over 22% in the past day. At the time of reporting, the token was trading at $0.0915, with a 24-hour trading volume of $96 million.

Investors losing interest in Moo Deng?

Just over a week earlier, on Oct. 8, the Solana-based coin was making headlines after it experience a 40% surge after Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin’s sale of 10 billion Moo Deng tokens and a subsequent donation of over $640,000 worth of cryptocurrency to his biotech charity fund, Kanro.

There was even an investor who managed to turn his $800 investment into a $7.5 million jackpot through his investment in Moo Deng. Some experts have also speculated that the Moo Deng memecoin will continue to climb following the Memecoin supercycle period.

But it seems that Moo Deng's bubble is about to go bust, as investors seem to lose their interest in the celebrity hippo. Since its peak, Moo Deng has plummeted by nearly 45% in the following week.

Zeneca, a well-known Web3 thought leader and founder of Zenacademy, commented on the meme coin’s downfall on X. He remarked that meme coins with rapid rises, like Moo Deng, often experience steep corrections of 70-90%.

"Not saying it’s over for Moo Deng, but I definitely side with Murad’s view that cult coins are the future. Cute animal-themed tokens, like Moo Deng, tend to struggle beyond the initial pump unless they build a strong community," Zeneca noted, referencing Murad Mahmudov, a prominent advocate of meme coins.

Moo Deng reached its all-time high on Sept. 28, trading at $0.338 with weekly gains exceeding 700%. Its market cap soared to over $300 million, making it the largest token in the Pump.fun ecosystem at the time. However, its market cap has since dropped 70%, now standing at $90 million.

The coin has also fallen from its leading position among Pump.fun tokens, now ranking fifth. In the broader meme token market, Moo Deng currently ranks 473rd by market cap.

Will the Supercycle and the hype over Moo Deng continue to push for a comeback?

If Murad is right, does this mean that this could signal the death of the Moo Deng token? The prices of memecoins are often fed the hype of the hype from the community. A waning interest in the coin could be the ultimate kryptonite for a memecoin, even if you are a superstar hippo from Thailand.

But I doubt this would be the end of Moo Deng. With the memecoin Supercycle still ongoing , I believe there would still be a lot of hype around memecoin. Hence, I think what the Moo Deng token is currently experiencing is something temporary.

Furthermore, it seems that the internet's interest in Moo Deng has just begun. Just last week, the roads of Chonburi were flooded as fans rushed to visit the Khao Kheow Open Zoo just to get a glimpse of the internet sensation.

All these points to the fact that unlike other memecoins that get forgotten after a short while, the popularity of the Moo Deng Token is still rising after its initial peak. Who knows that it might even outdo itself and reach another all time high.

Who is Moo Deng?

Moo Deng is a two-month-old pygmy hippo residing at Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand.

She has become an internet sensation, thanks to viral TikTok videos showcasing her chubby cheeks and perpetually wet appearance, garnering millions of views.

Her online fame has contributed to a sharp increase in zoo visitors, with attendance numbers doubling in September 2024, according to the BBC. The zoo's director, Narongwit Chodchoy, predicted that Moo Deng's popularity could bring in over $6.13 million by the end of the year.